International affairs in Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Province, are expanding rapidly — particularly in tourism — following BTS's full-group comeback and new album "Arirang," the global popularity of the musical "Arari," and Kangwon Land's announcement of its internationalization vision.
The surge in international business has prompted Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province's Global Headquarters to step in directly. Contributing factors include growing numbers of foreign tourists on the Jeongseon Arirang Train, the international profile of Arari performances, the recruitment of foreign agricultural workers, Kangwon Land's globalization drive to revitalize the coal industry transition zone, and the presence of K-wellness destinations such as High1, Park Roche and Romijian.
The Global Headquarters — established by Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province to address residents' international concerns — will operate a mobile civil affairs office at the main conference room of the Jeongseon-gun Office on Tuesday at 2 p.m. The initiative aims to ease daily inconveniences for residents in the southern region and strengthen on-the-ground communication.
Consultation areas reflect Jeongseon's regional characteristics, covering general civil affairs, tourism closely tied to the local economy, support for the coal industry transition zone — a key issue in the southern region — and road infrastructure to improve residential conditions.
A tailored multi-department consultation system will be in place. Residents may register their cases in advance or submit them on the day of the event.
Simple cases will be resolved on the spot, while complex matters will be addressed quickly through inter-departmental collaboration.
Son Chang-hwan, head of the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Global Headquarters, said the mobile civil affairs office is "a communication platform where we listen directly to residents' voices on the ground and work together to find solutions." He added that the province would "actively address the inconveniences of southern-region residents through this Jeongseon-gun session and continue to pursue field administration that leaves no one behind."
abc@heraldcorp.com
